‘Ghost Island #2:’ Comic Book Review

Ghost Island #2 "Crossing Over" (created and written by Joseph Oliveira) continues the tale of Josh Evans, a troubled psychic who is invited by a wealthy man to an island to perform spiritual readings. He arrives at the island with a group of others. They discover that it is a “theme park” of sorts where ghosts are imprisoned in an asylum for public viewing.

SPOILERS BELOW for Ghost Island #1

In this second issue of Ghost Island, we learn more about Josh’s backstory and the disappearance of his wife. Though the reader doesn’t yet find out what happened to his wife, the group at the island includes a reporter whose sole purpose in life seems to be to expose Josh as a murderer – though there is no evidence of it. One other member of the group, Mason, has awakened to find his son missing. In the middle of it all, Josh is tasked with entering the mind of one of the ghosts, a deliciously evil one at that.

Anabela Turlione was brought back from issue #1 for the art, and rightfully so. It allows for a beautiful continuum in the story, with her familiar strokes of black and gray reminding the reader just how dire the situation on the island is. The characters appear and act the same as in the first issue, which is so important in a limited series. She draws Josh in happier times in flashbacks perfectly, giving the reader a nice contrast to his disarrayed life in the present. And, she proves that blood and gore do not need colors to make a reader’s skin crawl.

Another brilliant installment in this series, that leaves the reader with a ton of more questions than issue #1. The play between past and present works beautifully, the character development is coming along nicely, and the tension keeps rising, leaving us with another cliffhanger. I cannot wait to get my hands on issue #3 to hopefully solve some of the mysteries and find out what other insane ghosts live on Ghost Island.